If You Know These 15 Words, Your English is EXCELLENT!

I've got 15 words - and if you know all of them, your English vocab is better than 97% of people worldwide. In other words, you're an English vocab pro. So, do you think you're in the top 3% of English speakers? Let's find out. Here's how this is going to work: I'll show you a word, and then I'll give you three choices. And your job is to pick the best definition. Got it?

We'll start with five medium difficulty words and work our way up. Here's word number one:

Value. Does this word mean hope, worth, or uncertainty? If something has value, that means it's useful in some way, or that it can be exchanged for money. Cars tend to lose their value over time.

Word number two: sustain. Does this mean to support, to weaken, or to finish? To sustain something means to support it or to keep it going over time. Runners need to sustain their energy in order to finish a marathon.

Word number three: various. Does this mean different, the same, or confusing? If something is various, that means it includes several different types of things. You can buy various kinds of food at a supermarket.

Word number four: emphasize. Does this mean to highlight, to remove, or to diminish? To emphasize something means to give special importance to it. The teacher emphasized the need to study before the exam.

Word number five: typical. Does this mean ordinary, expensive, or complicated? If something is typical, it's ordinary. There's nothing unusual about it. It was a typical day: I got up, I went to work, I came home—same old, same old.

Okay, five questions down. Did you get them all right? I hope so! Now let's try some slightly tougher words. Here we go.

Word number six: blunt. Does this mean sharp, straightforward, or foolish? If someone is blunt, they speak in a direct and straightforward way. Catherine was blunt about her opinions, even if they upset others.

Word number seven: consequence. Does this mean cause, result, or ignorance? A consequence is the result of an action or a choice, and it's usually a bad result. The consequence of skipping class was that John failed his course.

Word number eight: strain. Does this mean to relax, to look down on, or to make a great effort? To strain means to exert physical or mental effort, often to the point of difficulty or even pain. Jack strained his back while lifting those heavy boxes.

Word number nine: authentic. Does this mean unoriginal, genuine, or serious? If something is authentic, it's genuine or real, not a copy. Experts confirmed that the painting was authentic.

Word number ten: evolve. Does this mean to remain the same, to change gradually, or to fall apart? To evolve means to change over time, often from something simple to something more complex. Since the 1980s, information technology has evolved rapidly.

Excellent work!

Word number eleven: blithe. Does this mean carefree and cheerful, serious and somber, or confident and experienced? If someone is blithe, they're cheerful and unconcerned when they probably shouldn't be. Mary kept spending money blindly, even though her bank account was almost empty.

Word number twelve: ambiguous. Does this mean identical, overworked and exhausted, or open to more than one interpretation? If something is ambiguous, it can be understood in more than one way. The essay instructions were ambiguous, so Jennifer asked for more specific details.

Word number thirteen: facilitate. Does this mean to make longer, to make easier, or to make stronger? To facilitate something means to make it easier to do or to finish. The new software will facilitate communication between team members.

Word number fourteen: succinct. Does this mean brief, vague, or condescending? If something is succinct, it's brief and clear. Her explanation was succinct and covered all the main points without unnecessary information.

And finally, word number fifteen: eschew. Does this mean to undo, to avoid, or to promote? To eschew means to deliberately avoid or give up something. Zach decided to eschew social media so he could focus on preparing for medical school.

Did you know all 15 words? Amazing! I hope you leave a comment below and let me know. And whatever your score, you should feel very proud of yourself for taking this quiz because you are working to improve your English, and that's what really counts. Don't forget to hit that subscribe button for more English learning content, and I'll see you soon.